From the Stars They Came
by Lady Abernathy Wordsmith
Summary: Dreams are not rare, everyone knows this, but when Hotori, god-king of Seiyo (according to him) starts having some 'special' dreams, what's a boy to do?Especially if they most often feature a strange boy, with who Tadase can't help but be fascinated by? "NO!" Tadase protested, face red and head set aflame in frustration. "It isn't like THAT!"
1. And so It Begins

And now, for the most unknown, unconventional, unusual pairing in the history of every fandom ever...TADAFUYU! *crowd of three cheers in the background*

* * *

Tadase found himself against a wall, pressed tightly against it as some unknown person forcibly held him there. He heard a harsh, gravelly voice whisper into his ear, asking something of him, or maybe demanding? He couldn't tell. They had a bad accent, he could barely understand, and caught only a few fleeting words.

He screamed, but there was something in his mouth, muffling any attempts he tried to scream. He tried with all he could, he bellowed and shouted and screeched, but nothing would work.

He fought and struggled as the person who attacked him bound his hands and feet, forcing Tadase over his shoulder like a sack of flour, all while he kept on screaming.

"Stop it! You jerk, leave him alone!" Tadase heard someone shout. The person carrying him hissed as another person, a boy around Tadase's age, ran to them. Tadase saw him, bright blue eyes, dark blue hair, pale skin and wearing a hoodie, reaching out to Tadase.

Tadase held his hand out, tears streaming down his face, trying desperately to grab hold of the other's hand. Before they could make contact, however, the entire world faded away, each dirty brick was replaced with black shadow, all light vanished, and the boy who tried to save him disappeared into nothingness, wiped away from sight.

~.~.~.~.~.~

Tadase jolted awake, heart hammering in his chest, his normally neat hair a flyaway mess atop his head as he swiveled his head around, bleary eyed as he realized that he was still at Seiyo, in the middle of class.

The room was emptying, and his beloved Amu Hinamori stood by his desk, along with Yaya.

"Good moooorning sleepy head~!" Yaya sang with a grin. "You were mumbling like crazy in your sleep, Tadase-sama!"

He rubbed at his face, trying to hide his pink flush. "Ah, sorry. Did I miss anything?"

"Not really," Said Amu. "It's not like you to nod off in class. Didn't get enough sleep last night?"

"I guess I didn't..." He sighed, laying his head back on his desk.

"Maybe you should go home early," Amu suggested. "Go catch up on your sleep."

"No need," Tadase was resolute, standing and shaking his hair back into neatness. "What class do we have next?"

"Home ec." Relayed Yaya. "We're sewing tiny pillows today."

"That's good," He yawned slightly. "Kiseki was complaining that his bed was getting lumpy."

~.~.~.~.~.~

Tadase was starting to fear sleep. Lately, over the past month or so, he'd been having some...strange dreams, most of them somehow featuring that weird, weird boy. Blue haired, blue eyed, pale skinned. Sometimes, they'd be in a kitchen, with books between them, or eating at a fast food place, or even in the Guardian Club House. He'd seen that face so many times, it seemed etched into Tadase's memory. He had managed to go the rest of the day not thinking about his dreams, only remembering again when he stood before his bed, dressed in his PJ's and ready for bed.

"The dreams again?" Asked Kiseki, floating onto Tadase's head.

"It's getting worse and they're getting weirder." Sighed he blonde, turning away and sitting on his bed. "Not to mention, they're coming during the day now."

"What was the last one you had?"

"I...we...were in a dark place, an alley I think, and...something was really cl...close and...I was up against a wall, it was holding me there and...He came, the blue haired boy." Tadase stammered through, his face getting redder and redder as he thought about this abduction, about how crazy it all seemed. He stuffed his face into his pillow and screamed.

"Are you sure you've never seen him before?" Asked Kiseki, flying above his dear friend. Tadase mumbled out 'no' through his pillow, before flopping onto his back.

"I've never...ever seen any guy like that, and I could barely see him at all." He groaned aloud, hands going to rub at his eyes. "I don't know what it's about...it really scared me, being taken like that." Tadase huffed, rolling onto his side.

"Maybe it's a prophetic dream." Kiseki suggested, going to sit on Tadase's chest. "Have you considered going to your uncle about this?"

"If it keeps going any longer, I might have to." Tadase bemoaned, head tilting back. "But what could it mean? It's just been the same guy for weeks! And it's always some ridiculous situation."

"True love?" Tadase sat up suddenly, causing Kiseki to tumble back. "I'm not ga-!" There was a knock at the door, and his mother opened it slightly.

"Tadase-chan?"

He sat straight, wondering if she heard his ranting. "Yeah?"

"A letter came for you this morning, I forgot to give it to you when you got home." She said, handing him a plain white envelope.

"And try to get some sleep tonight, okay? Amu-chan said you were falling asleep in class."

"I..ah, yes, Mom. I will." He promised, taking the letter. When she left, he opened it, momentarily forgetting his other issues.

The envelope itself was strange. Completely blank, no address or stamps, so whoever mailed it had to physically come to his door and put it in his mailbox. The letter was strange too, it looked like it was written with an old fashioned type-writer, and was written on light blue paper.

 **TO: Hotori Tadase of Seiyo Academy**  
 **Dear Hotori-san, please forgive such a strange letter. I couldn't risk the enemy finding this and realizing that we're onto their schemes. To tell you the truth, I'm not sure that we really are onto anything.  
I'm a defender of the planet from unknown alien lifeforms, and there is a faction working in your school that's very fascinated with you, your friends, and the student body government you head. ('The Guardians' I believe?)**

 **We've decoded some of their chatter, but we can't make heads or tails of it, as they're using some sort of coding system. There's been talk of 'magic', 'locket', 'key' and 'the Eclipse'. The nearest eclipse is the Solar Eclipse, happening this 21st of December.**  
 **If this day has any significance to you, please tell us. However, the first and foremost reason I've contacted you is to warn you. Whatever 'magic' you possess, be it weaponry, information, or anything of the like, I beg that you be careful with it, and guard it with your life. Alien beings are coming for it, and they'll do anything to get it.**  
 **Please, be careful.**

Tadase read over the letter a few times, worry and fear creeping into his spine as he went over it again. Aliens? Did they mean outer space aliens or foreigners? And they were after magic? Shugo Chara Magic was strong, he would admit, but it couldn't be weaponized! (He tried that before, it simply didn't work!)

It had to be some sort of joke, right? Just a dumb chain letter, probably from Kukai...

He looked at the back, and saw that it had instructions. To write a reply on a separate piece of paper and fold it up with the original message, put it back in the envelope, tape it to an outside door with a porchlight and shut the porchlight on and off once. It also that that, regardless of his reply, the letter and envelope would disappear.

Would he go through the trouble? He had to, didn't he? If only to satisfy his curiosity. He wrote down his reply on a piece of note paper.

Have you been watching me?  
Who are you?  
What do you mean by 'aliens'?

He put them back in the envelope, and tip-toed out. His mother was probably in the living room with his dad, so he could use the door on the far east side of the house, the door that led to the garden.

He taped it up, and shut off the light and flicked it back on. He waited a few minutes with bated breath, and looked back outside. His eyes widened when he saw that, indeed, the envelope was missing from where he taped it. Definitely the outer space aliens, he deduced before shutting off the light again and waiting.

He counted to twenty, and opened the light and door again. The original letter was gone, along with his note paper. Inside, it was read simply:

 **For a while, yes. I'm sorry.**  
 **For now, that's classified.**  
 **Aoutanian's from the planet Aouit, fourth planet in the Delta planetary system, circling a hot blue supergiant star. Known on Earth as Orion's Belt.**

Tadase looked up, trying to find some kind of spacecraft, but of course not seeing anything. Even the stars were blotted out by streetlights, so he couldn't even see where these aliens were coming from... He went back to his room, and wrote one last reply.

The Solar Eclipse means nothing to me.

And, with that, he went to bed, mind troubled with the thoughts of aliens, magic, the Humpty Lock and Dumpty Key as he drifted into a restless sleep.


	2. Enter, The Boy In Blue

The chilling wind broke through Tadase's clothes, biting at his skin worse than any dog or cat ever could. He curled his arms closer to him, shivering slightly as he tried to force his teeth together to stop them from chattering. He stood on a pier, made of worn wood and feeling incredibly unstable. Looking out, he saw a frothy sea of white and grey as waves hit the shoreline beneath. That grey expanse extending from the horizon up into the sky, coloring even the clouds that same, monochrome grey as white snow flurried across his sight.

Suddenly, he warm presense at his back, and he looked to his right. There, the boy stood. Wearing thick black woolen pants, black winter boots that laced up to his knee, a black sweater and a rather large, black fur hood and cloak that might've once been a bear. He almost looked like a viking, ready for winter combat. He pulled apart the metal clasp that held the cloak on his shoulders and tossed it over Tadase.

The King, after a moment, realized that he was putting his coat onto him. Its warmth pulled Tadase from his mindless staring, looking at the blue-haired boy who was now just as cold as he had been. "I can't," Tadase said, already having the cloak half off his shoulders. "It's yours, you shouldn't-"

The boy pulled it back onto him, pulling the furred-hood over Tadase's head and fitting the metal clasps together. He held Tadase's hands, cold and chapped from the icy winds, and kissed them. "A king shouldn't be cold," He said softly. "And besides, snow doesn't bother me much anyway. It's a part of my name, after all." He smiled slightly.  
The blue haired boy stood, his hands still holding Tadase's. This was the first time Tadase had faced him standing as equals. He was a smidge taller than Tadase, tall enough so he looked down at him.

Tadase's voice died in his throat, looking up at the boy who had haunted his dreams for so long. He felt his mouth open, he could feel his voice coming out of his throat, but he couldn't hear it. Startled, he tried again, and he still heard nothing.

The boy pulled him close, holding the King to his chest, his arms between Tadase's back and the inside of the cloak. Tadase reached around him, squeezing him back. He heard the boy whisper to him. "Don't worry," he breathed softly. "I'm here to protect you, Hotori-Sama."

~.~.~.~.~.~

Tadase woke up on the floor instead of his bed, tangled in sheets with his mother taking a picture. "MOM!" He shrieked, trying to reach for her phone. She giggled, jumping out of the way as he scrambled, trying to get up.  
This morning was not going well, Tadase decided as he trudged off to school, deciding to miss the usual morning Guardian's meeting in favor of going straight to the Chairman.

Of course, his darling uncle was waiting for him.

"Uncle, does the Solar Eclipse mean anything to you?" He asked as he approached.

"Why yes." The Chairman replied, spreading a black satin cloth across his desk. "I believe one's coming up next weekend, or so I'm told. I'm looking forward to it." Tsukasa took out a deck of cards.

"But...Magically. Is anything going to happen to The Guardian's that night?"

"This is the first total Solar Eclipse to happen in Japan for many centuries, so I couldn't say." Tsukasa began to separate the cards, taking out all the unnecessary cards, putting all the ones he needed onto a single pile in the middle of the black cloth between Tadase and he.

With that done, Tsukasa settled back in his chair.

"So, you don't know?" Asked Tadase.

"I don't." he was said as he began flipping cards onto a black cloth. "The moon is upside down," He observed as Tadase approached. "What are you unsure of, Nephew?"

"Something is going to happen on the Solar Eclipse, and I don't know what." Replied Tadase testily. "Maybe your cards will prove more useful. I need to know what'll happen."

"They tell me what could be, yes. But, they might not give the answers to the questions you want." Tsukasa warned as he set down another card. A man and woman entangled together, standing beneath a shower of heavenly light. "The Lovers. Could it be my little nephew is in love?"

"Yes." Tadase said, hoping his cheeks weren't as pink as he felt. "With Amulet Heart, of course. You know that."  
He picked up another card from his deck, a woman standing tall, a blindfold over her eyes, a merchant's scales in one hand and a sword in the other. It was The Justice, upside down. Tadase was lying. He looked up at Tadase with a raised eyebrow.

"What is it?" Asked Tadase, a tone of slight hostility in his voice.

"Nothing important." He said instead, trying to sound innocent as he set the card facedown next to the other two. "You don't come to me often, Tadase-kun. There must be something else you came to me for?"

"Yes, actually." Tadase said softly. "I've been...having strange dreams."

"No need to worry, Nephew. All boys go through them." Tsukasa said with a slight smile.

"No! Not that!" Tadase yelped slightly. "They're...sort of...prophetic, I suppose? They've down me things that haven't happened, and they always have the same person in them."

"Hm..." Tsukasa set aside the three cards he put out, and fanned out the remaining set. "Pick up one."

Tadase, for a moment, hesitated, his fingers ghosting over one, before switching to another. He flipped it over, a woman in blues with a staff and a cross on her chest, sitting on a throne with a moon over her head. "The High Priestess." Said Tadase, flipping the card between two fingers to show his uncle. "What does that mean?"

"Congratulations," Said Tsukasa with a genuine smile. "You're Clairvoyant, just like your uncle."

Tadase looked up, alarmed. Clairvoyant? "I...I can't be, I'm supposed to be a king, not...not you. Not support."

"There's no rule that says it's impossible to be both." Said the man wisely, "Now, think of the boy in your visions, and pick another."

Tadase swallowed slightly, taking another and flipping it, a compass surrounded by clouds and golden birds. "The Wheel of Fortune." Tsukasa's smile grew. "That boy is your destiny."

Tadase's red eyes widened, his blush deepening. "That isn't possible!" He said firmly, his ears almost giving off steam. He flipped the Wheel back down, and picked another, this time a red skinned man with the horns of a ram and the wings of a bat.

"The Devil." Tsukasa was close to laughing. "Representing...sexuality."

Tadase's face got redder, picking another.

Tsukasa read the card, a female angel holding up the globe, looking at it with reverence. "The World, meaning...completion and perfection." He was laughing under his breath. "The boy in your dreams is your soulmate, Nephew. There's no need to fight it."

"I'm NOT GAY!" Tadase huffed, stomping out of Tsukasa's office, his face still burning red.

Tsukasa's smile was still on his face, going to flip up the card Tadase had nearly chosen the first time. His smile twitched slightly, before becoming grim. It was a tall building, struck by lightning in a storm and set aflame. It was The Tower, meaning disaster.

~.~.~.~.~.~

Tadase went straight to class, still steaming and repeating his new-found mantra: 'I'm not gay, I love Amulet Heart'.  
The only good thing about his Uncle's accusations was that he was much too angry to fall asleep and dream during class.

He was the last to arrive to the daily tea party that afternoon. He actually sat outside by the courtyard fountain for a bit, ignoring the early December chill as he debated if he should tell them about his dreams, then if he should tell them about the letter he received.

He had to tell them about the Solar Eclipse, their magic was at risk too, and his dreams...He's say that he was having them, but not about what he was dreaming about, not exactly at least.

He steeled himself and his choice, going into the green house. "Everyone," He said as he approached. "I have an announcement."

As soon as Tadase even got close to the table, he was tackled in a massive group hug.

"It's alright, Tadase-sama, you're still a king to us!" Said Kukai, squeezing him tight.

"We could never think any less of you!" Agreed Nagihiko, clinging to his waist.

"We accept you, Tadase-Sama!" Amu declared, holding onto his arm.

"You're our king now and forever!" Yaya promised as she held onto his leg.

"What's this all about?!" Asked Tadase, eyes wide. Did they know about his Clairvoyance?

"I heard you coming out of The Chairman's office this morning." Said Amu, looking up at him with her amber eyes filled with understanding. "You don't have to hide it, we know you're gay! We don't care!"

It felt like a bucket of ice water had been dumped down Tadase's back, a rage filled his heart and belly as he felt the weight of his character crown appear on his head. "I AM NOT GAY!" He bellowed, shaking off his friends from his person and flipping the nearest table.

After a few minutes, a little cleaning, and a sincerely steamed Tadase, they were all sat down with fresh cookies and tea. "I was consulting with the Chairman with some meteorological problem's I believe might be an issue for us soon, and some possibly prophetic dreams I've been having."

"Dreams? Like...visions?" Asked Amu, having breathed her relieved sigh now that Tadase had firmly, firmly asserted his straightness.

"Sort of, they haven't come true yet, or happened while I was awake." He said, looking deeply into his tea cup. "It's hard to explain but...someone is watching me, not an evil force, I'm sure, but still. Someone sent me a letter the other day, and they explained that some...alien creature is here, and is going to try use the Solar Eclipse and our magic, but I don't know for what."

Kukai coughed slightly at the mention of Aliens. "Alien?! You must mean foreigners, right? Someone from overseas?"

"No, I mean alien aliens." Tadase said firmly. "I asked that myself, but they were very clear with what they meant. They're from a planet that orbits the star that makes Orion's Belt."

"Is there any way to get in contact with them again?" Asked Nagihiko worriedly. "This is...it's crazy. We have no idea what the Eclipse is going to do to us?"

"No idea..." Tadase sighed softly, leaning back in his chair and rubbing at his eyes. "I wish I could contact them again, but I have no idea ho-"

Distantly, there was a knock. Tadase sat up suddenly, slightly alerted.

"Someone's here?" Asked Yaya, standing herself. "I'll get it."

She went to the door, and Tadase waited with bated breath. He heard the knock again as Yaya came back. "There's nobody there." She said with a shrug.

Again, there was a knock. Tadase listened for it, silencing the rest of his court with a quick hand wave. He looked up, and saw something round hitting one of the sky-light panels. It flew to another panel, and smacked itself into glass. "There!" He said, pointing up. "It's that thing!"

Kukai rushed to where the skylight controls, quickly opening and closing one of the lights, unintentionally letting a bit of snow fall in, right onto Tadase's head as the thing floated down.

Tadase held out his hands, the little thing, a perfect black sphere about the size of a softball, hovered into the space between his hands. It had a bit of snow on it, and the snow didn't melt as it twisted in half, pulling itself apart as some sort of holographic image appeared between its two halves. He vaguely felt snow falling on his head and hands, but otherwise felt as if the entire world had been pulled out from beneath his feet as it spoke, the holographic image relaying a sound scope moving in sync with the voice.

"Ask and thy shalt receive." It was the blue boy, standing before him in a less barbarian-ish garb, this time in a strange robe. Pure white linen robes wrapped around his small frame, his right arm more heavily covered than his right, with a golden sash wrapped around his left shoulder, all of it tied with a golden rope around his waist. He had a golden laurel around his head, and wore a pair of equally golden, wire-framed glasses, and light leather roman sandal's that laced up his knee.

Tadase looked around him, finding himself no longer in his Court's Greenhouse, but instead in a giant pantheon, an arching roof above his head held paintings of the stars, each of them connected by little lines and forming the constellations. Beneath him, the floor was made of patterned marble, making what looked to be a mural of the oceans currents, each facet of dark blue stone was curving into another, swirling together in a way that almost looked real. The walls were entirely bookshelves, curved to fit the wall, and each shelf was packed, with little to no space between the volumes. In the center was a giant sphere, an entire globe, Tadase realized a moment later, with all the continents and mountain ranges carved into stone, and even the oceans themselves were carved in, leaving little gaps in the globe where water and massive sea trenches were.

He could hear little gears inside working, the slight and nearly silent 'clack, clack, clack'-ing only audible in the silence of the pantheon. It was turning, he saw, the entire globe was spinning, and a lantern above his head must've been a representation of the Sun, so that meant…He saw the moon, a faintly glowing stone on the far side of the planet, looking down on North America. That was the moon. Tadase found Japan, and swallowed slightly as he saw the celestial bodies moving, slowly coming together as seconds ticked on.

Tadase felt a weight on his head as he ran his hand over 's representation on the globe, and reached up to touch. It was a crown, not like his Character Change crown, or even like his Character transformation crown either. He took it off, and examined it. It was made of metal with no cloth to be seen, it had wires like a wrought iron fence, and vines and thorns wrapped around those wires, creating a solid base. It was encrusted with rose-cut rubies and diamonds, along with a few metal roses. He looked back up at the blue boy, gaping, unable to quite believe what was in his hand or where he was.

He just saw him, with the most serene, sincere look in those shockingly blue eyes, as deep as any sea and filled with just as many mysteries. "Hotori-sama." He had a joyous smile gracing his lips. Tadase, for a second, felt as if lighting had stuck him.


	3. Aliens, Magic, Dreams, Oh My!

Kukai was about to apologize for snowing on Tadase, but was stopped short when he saw the distant look in his friend's eyes as he stared at the thing that flew down.

 **"Ask and thy shalt receive, Hotori-sama."** It said, it's voice slightly high sounding. Probably a young boy.

"Y...yes, thank you for answering." Tadase said, blinking hard, as if to wake himself up a bit. "You're the one who sent the letter?"

 **"The one who wrote it, yes."**

"Why send a letter then, and speak to me now?" Asked Tadase, moving to sit back down his chair, his court following with him.

The orb tilted upwards, so it's halves and hologram were horizontal. **"It took a bit to figure out a system to speak to you."** He said. **"You can hear my voice but anybody else listening in can't hear anything. You look like you're talking to yourself. It's a series of special series of sound waves that resonate with your human ears only. Any alien beings that happen to be listening aren't able to hear the soundwaves I'm producing."**

"Should we introduce ourselves...?" Asked Nadeshiko nervously.

 **"No need,"** The person said simply, it's hologram extending to show an info panel to show Amu. **"Hinamori Amu, the Joker Chair."** It swiveled to Kukai, show a panel with his informatio **n. "Sohma Kukai, the Jack Chair."** Then to Nadeshiko. **"Fujisaki Nadeshiko, the Queen Chair."** To Yaya. **"Yuiki Yaya, the Ace Chair. And, of course..."** It turned to Tadase. **"The King Chair, Hotori Tadase-Sama."**

"You know all about us?!" Yelped Amu. "That's an invasion of privacy!"

 **"Of course it is."** Said the voice. **"But it was necessary. I had to find out why you were so interesting to the Aoutanian's. So far, I've found nothing, and less than nothing where 'magic' is concerned. As far as I can see, you're all just a normal student body with an abnormal amount of power."**

"If you know all about us, then tell us who you are!" Demanded Kukai.

 **"I can't. The Aoutanian's know who I am, and who I consort with. But, I can tell you this; I am like you. I'm an earth-born human under 13, male and raised in Japan."**

"That doesn't tell us anything!" Said Amu.

 **"Exactly the point. If the enemy knows who I am and who you have in your corner, then they'll know how to counter us. I need your co-operation."**

Tadase saw that Nadeshiko was about to interrupt, Yaya shrinking in her seat, the mere idea of aliens and some sort of magical D-Day a bit too much for her to handle. "Stop," He ordered, eyes never leaving the orb. "Let him speak."

Any dissidence was silenced. **"Thank you."** Said the voice. **"I'm not going to go without a name. For now, you can call me Yue."**

"Yue." Said Tadase. "What do you know about those code words you told me about?"

 **"The words were 'Magic', 'Lock', 'key' and 'eclipse'."** He relayed. **"So far, we have no new information. Have you gathered any since we last communicated?"**

"Yes," Said Tadase. "First off, magic is literal magic. We have it with us. They're called Guardian Characters, they're protectors of our futures and are born when we made sincere wishes for our lives."

 **"Magic's real...?"** He paused for a moment. **"I guess there's crazier things out in the universe. I believe you."**

"Good." Tadase nodded slightly. "Second, The lock and key are magical artifacts called the Humpty Lock and Dumpty Key, we have one in our possession."

 **"What happens if they're together?"**

"We don't know."

 **"Do you know where the key is?"**

"We do," Said Tadase. "With a vagrant thief named Tsukiyomi Ikuto."

 **"Okay, lock and key and magic...Eclipse?"**

"Our prophet, the Chairman Tsukasa, said he doesn't know anything about that. It's the first Solar Eclipse Japan has had in-"

 **"-over a millennia."** Finished Yue. **"I was looking forward to it, but it seems like it'll be interrupted by magic and mayhem."**

"I'm...I'm sorry, Yue." Tadase's voice was soft with sadness, as if it was a massive loss that Yue wouldn't be spending a few minutes of his weekend looking up at the sky.

 **"It's alright, I might actually prefer this."** Yue said with a small laugh. **"Okay, so what's the purpose of your student body? Far as I can tell, you don't schedule any events at Seiyo."**

"Guardianship." This time, it was Amu who spoke. "Every child in the world has a Guardian Character, but sometimes they go bad before they hatch. We track down as many bad eggs as we can find and purify them."

"There's also the embryo." Said Nadeshiko. "It's a special wish-granting egg. We don't know who it belongs to, but when we find it, we were going to wish Tadase-Sama into power."

 **"To become a literal king?"**

"Yes," Said Tadase firmly. "It's my destiny."

Yue paused again. **"Far be it for me to mess with destiny."** He said finally. **"Embryo, you said? I believe...Yes, we thought it had translated to embargo for eggs for some reason, but with this...it makes sense. Aoutanian's are trying to make a wish-granting egg during the Solar Eclipse."**

The Guardian's looked around at each other, worry and alarm evident. "How?!" Asked Kukai.

 **"I don't know. Now that I know the meaning of the words and what a Guardian character is, I can do some more research into it. Hotori-Sama, I thank you and I will keep you updated. If the worst comes to pass, I might need you and your Guardian's help."**

"Yue," Tadase said before the ball could close up. "I have to ask you one more thing."

 **"Anything."**

"Does your name have 'snow' in it?"

 **"Anything except that."** The ball halves fit back together, the ball dropping onto the table with a small thud, clattering the dishware slightly.

Tadase reached out, taking the ball and finding it strangely cold to the touch.

"What was that all about?" asked Kukai, slumping in his chair. "Aliens and magic and...Who is this Yue?"

"I know him, or at least...of him. " Said Tadase softly, his hand smoothing over the black surface. "When it came down, I saw him. I had a waking vision."

That alarmed everyone into sitting upright. "Who is he?!" Asked Yaya.

"He's...He's..." Tadase glanced up at the ceiling. "They might be watching. I can't say." He said with a soft sigh. "I just...I know it's him. He cut out too quickly when I asked about his name."

Everyone exchanged wary glances. "We can't...there's nothing we can do right now." Nadeshiko reasoned. "Let's just call it a day. A lot's happened."

Everyone nodded in agreement, packing up and leaving.

Tadase still held the little orb as he walked home, clutching onto it tightly, half-worried it would disappear like the letter taped to his door had.

He went straight to his bed, Kiseki quietly following. He pulled his knees up to his chin, and sat. He sat there for what felt like hours, telling his mother he wasn't hungry when she came for him, ignoring his father when he came to ask if something was wrong. He sat there, alone in silence, for hours. His room went dark before he could gather the courage to ask, and spoke softly. "Yue? Can you hear me?" He asked the ball quietly.

It didn't split open, and Yue didn't reply.

"Yue, I'm scared..." He admitted quietly. "Magic is all I've got, without it, I'm just...just a shy kid...I don't know what I'd do if I lost my Guardian Character..." Tadase swallowed tightly, clutching onto the ball tightly. "Even if I never become this world's king, I still need Kiseki. I can barely speak in class without him..." He felt his tiny fairy pull on his clothes slightly, a teeny-tiny hug from his smallest and greatest support. "Yue, do you think you could promise me something? Please say Kiseki will be safe when the Eclipse comes."

The orb split apart, and Tadase let go of it. Yue's voice came to him.

 **"** **Hotori-sama,"** Tadase saw his face, pale, round, his lips set in a thin, determined line. He felt the other boy's hand, gently caressing his cheek, pulling Tadase's eyes up, so Tadase was looking into those endless, deep blue eyes. **"I promise you that you, your fairy, your magic and your friends will be safe when this is all done."**

Tadase reached up, holding Yue's hand to his face, feeling warm tears slide down his face. **"Thank you, Yue."** He said softly, feeling that same sensation of the world being ripped away beneath him, feeling himself falling and falling and falling into absolute nothingness, only his time he had Yue to hold onto as he fell.

In a small house, a far ways away, a boy sat in his family's kitchen, staring at two halves of a floating orb that displayed a holographic sound scope. Around him, an array of French Folklore books, most of them bought new, were open and bookmarked with a dozen color-coded paper post-its. There was a notebook in front of him, with thirty pages of the 200-page notebook filled out already, despite the fact that it had only been a few hours since he started.

He watched the sound scope move, the line barely wiggling away, the sound nearly inaudible. Hotori-Sama must've fallen asleep, Fuyuki concluded, some strange part of him wanted to keep listening to his soothing breathing as the boy-king slept.

The living room light clicked on, and he turned in the kitchen chair to look. His dearest alien friend stood there, bleary eyed and wearing a white PJ gown and cap set, dressed for bed even though he was naked most of the time.

"Fuyuki-dono? You should be in bed right now." He said, rubbing at his eye as he walked into the kitchen. "We've done all we can for the Aoutanian Crisis for today, it's best to get a fresh start tomorrow."

"I know, Gunso, it's just..." Fuyuki sighed softly, closing the Orb and setting it down next to his Keroball on the chair next to him. "This is really important, and the deadline's coming."

Keroro heaved himself up to the counter, heating up a pot of milk and getting two mugs out. "Do you really trust this Hotori guy? Magic, eclipses, Humpy Dumpty's security kit...It doesn't seem real."

"Yeah, most people would say that about you too." Fuyuki reasoned with a small smile, chewing on the end of his pencil.

"Touche," Keroro said, trying to reach for the hot chocolate mix, up on a shelf a bit too high for him. "You're taking a lot at face-value, Fuyuki-dono. It isn't like you."

"I know that, too." Fuyuki said, standing and helping Keroro make his hot chocolate. "But...it's a gut feeling, and I'm going with it. I think Hotori-sama can be trusted."

Keroro looked like he wanted to question further, but decided to stop short as he poured the warm milk into two mugs. "Any word from Natsumi-Dono?"

"Yeah, she texted me earlier. She and her friends are having tons of fun skiing, she even won a contest." He said with a faint smile. "She isn't going to be back until the New Year though. What about Tama-chan and Nishizawa-san?"

"They did sent me a video update from America." The green alien relayed, plopping three teaspoons into each cup and mixing them. "Tamama says he's learning a lot about the Pekoponian Economy on Wall Street, and Momoka-Sama is learning a lot about business too. But...I'm still not sure about how you can learn about money and business on a street with a wall." He finished the hot chocolate by putting in two marshmallows before handing Fuyuki one of the finished drinks.

"Gunso, Wall Street is the American center of money trading." Fuyuki informed him with a laugh, taking the offered warm mug of Hot chocolate from his dear friend. "There's a Japanese trading market here. Tamama isn't going to learn anything useful for invading Japan there."

"Ehh?!" Keroro exclaimed, black eyes bugging out of his green face. "Well, that's an endeavor wasted..." He bemoaned, pouting as he sipped his own hot chocolate.

Fuyuki finished off his, and set it in the sink. "I'm going to bed," He yawned slightly, taking the orb and Keroball with him. "'Night Gunso."

"Goodnight, Fuyuki-dono."


End file.
